The Prophecy of Three
by ChildofLightandDark13
Summary: Years after the fall of King Arthur, Merlin is walking down the street and feels as if he is being watched by a magical presence. After meeting, they tell Merlin about the magic deep within the surface of Camelot as well as lead him to a whole new generation of Camelot. T for violence.
1. The Follower: Chapter One

Chapter One

Merlin was unimpressed this morning. Despite the new age of technology, he still couldn't quite grasp the idea of it. Therefore he struggled to figure out how to call back the man who was shouting through the small piece of glowing metal. The man was shouting about some new moving picture thing that Merlin thought was unusual and gave him a headache. As them man in the glowing metal got more angry, so did Merlin. In fact if he hadn't have been willing to attempt to calm down like Gaius would always tell him, he might have missed the fact that he was being followed.

At first he thought he was mistaken, surely no one would go to such lengths to follow what looks like an old man. But after a while the feeling of being watched did not fade. He then took four right turns and the presence he feels following him disappears after the second turn. However after he completed his square around the block, he felt the presence on his back again. Annoyed, Merlin tried to ignore it. Unfortunately, he failed. Whatever has been following him for over an hour would not be just a regular mortal, Merlin thought. Whatever it was he knew, mortals were not quite so determined. This was a creature of magic.

He decided to head away from his house, only to realize he was lost. He seemed to have been too busy trying to lose whatever was following him to have noticed where he was going. _You idiot_. Arthur surely would've said if he were there, Merlin thought. However the memory of Arthur could not have been mourned for long as from behind him he heard someone's footsteps. Trying to be as sneaky as possible he turned his head as if he was looking for an address. When he looked behind him. No one was there. This made the warlock slightly more nervous but he had more important matters, finding a map. The land that had once been the kingdom of Camelot, was now filled with houses and apartments and stores and all other sorts of things that made it impossible to walk through the town without getting lost. Merlin normally kept his map with him as he practically refused to use the metal thing known as a cell phone but seeming he had no choice, he pulled it out.

As he walked home the presence seemed to fade. Perhaps a descendant of Camelot was walking near where he was and the old spirit of Camelot was what he could feel. It would sometimes happen to him that in certain places he could feel Camelot and it's magic still there but it was beginning to happen less and less lately. As Merlin made his way to his apartment that looked out onto the lake he felt the presence less. He was upset and glad at the fact he couldn't find the source of the presence. He was glad the source had not turned out to be anything. But he was upset as he missed the kingdom and his friends. While he was the one who left the kingdom, he always wanted to return. All the people he treasured so dearly had left him a long time ago. The had all been so kind and loving but they had faded away and died. Merlin knew they would leave him and so he left the kingdom for a while when they were gone he came back. He couldn't bear to see the guilt that he alone would live forever. Gwen understood when he said goodbye. _I don't think this is your choice,_ Gwen had said, _if it were me I would do the same thing, I'll miss you._ He wished he could hear Gwen's voice again. He missed her, and the knights, and the tiny son of King Arthur, Arthur II. The young boy looked like his mother with her tanned skin and dark hair, but had piercing blue eyes like his father and he acted exactly what Merlin would expect a young Arthur I to act like. Arthur II was four when he left. But that was over a thousand years ago.

When he reached his apartment door, he pulled out his keys to unlock it. While he is turning the key he felt the same presence, he quickly headed inside deciding it is his artifacts making him feel so strange this morning. Merlin checked that everything was in place before moving the bookshelf to make sure the other side full of magical artifacts were still all in place. Merlin put the kettle on and then sat down in an armchair and pulled out a book. After the kettle was finished he poured himself a cup of tea and continued reading.

It wasn't until late afternoon when he heard the wind coming from an open window in his bedroom. Knowing all his windows are always shut he knew something must be wrong. He grabbed one of his stashed swords he had from the Camelot armoury before he left and placed it by his side. He opened the bedroom door and saw nothing wrong with the room but cautiously closed the window before he started to walk away. Before he exited he heard a voice, "You know sometimes you could try to let people talk to you without you assuming there here to kill you," the voice said right before Merlin swung his sword.


	2. The Visitor: Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Merlin missed. He almost fell back but something caught him. Not something, _someone_. Merlin staggered to his feet to find a young girl standing behind him. The girl had bright green eyes and auburn hair. Her eyes looked like Morgana's but were full of wonder rather than hate.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," she said putting her hands back in the pockets of her blue jacket.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" Merlin said harshly which made the girl quite fidgety.

"It's not like it's hard to get in, your window was unlocked. And I'm here to take you back to the kingdom of Camelot," she said much too quickly as if she were scared. Merlin's expression changed to accommodate the fact that she seemed to be frightened.

"We are in Camelot, child. The castle along with-" Merlin started.

"I know it's hard to believe but it actually exists, all your friends, everyone they're alive," she said.

"My friends would have died over a thousand years ago!" Merlin roared, "who are you some creature here to torture me?" The girl backed up away from Merlin.

"No… I'm Estella… I'm…" as the girl Estella was trying to explain herself one of the suits of armour that was Arthur's that Merlin kept around for decoration came to life. It jumped in front of the girl as almost to protect her. It looked ready to fight. It wasn't Merlin because his magic went dormant centuries ago.

"Did you do that?" Merlin asked more harshly than he wanted too. The girl's head peaked out from behind the armor as she nodded and started to back away again. She had to be the same age maybe even younger than he when he had first come to Camelot. With this his expression softened.

"I'm sorry for acting so rude, child, Camelot is still alive you say?" Merlin said curiously. As Estella Maris (or Stella she said she'd rather be called), explained what had happened to Camelot, Merlin let her look through his bookshelves.

"So I'm supposed to believe that after I left, a curse was put on Camelot that made it invisible to others and myself and then fifteen years ago the curse just lifted and no one knew," Merlin said unconvinced.

"I know it sounds like I'm making things up but I promise I'm not if you come with me I can shown you where Camelot is hidden," Stella said flipping through one of Merlin's books at his dining room table.

"You've never had any training before?" Merlin questioned for the third time.

"No sir, I was always told to suppress it, I never learned properly, never studied like you're supposed to. That's why things go wrong when I get nervous," Stella said.

"Why were you told to suppress my magic?" Merlin asked.

"I was never given an answer but I assume it's because when someone has suppressed it for long enough it's easier to get them to follow you when they say you can use it, magic while not illegal anymore in Camelot, it is still looked down upon," Stella said.

"And if I go with you, do you expect something in return?" Merlin asked.

"No, not really," Stella replied. At that moment something burst through the window. Merlin and Stella both grabbed a sword. The monster was small but still bad news. This beast wasn't hard to fight but it could certainly wreck a place. After the fight, the apartment was torn up and both Stella and Merlin had injuries. Stella who had been scratched by the monsters long claws was already healing herself.

"I suppose I don't have to hide my magic from you, Emrys," She said.

"Your magic, it still works here even though it is a more-" Merlin started.

"Boring non-magic version of Camelot?" Stella finished, "Yes and by the lack of magic you're applying to the wound on your leg I'd say yours has gone dormant after not being able to use it for so long."

When she was done with her wounds she healed Merlin's, even though he was upset a child could do more magic than him, he was still thankful.

"If Camelot is still alive how did I not know?" Merlin asked.

"I think you did know, but you're more rational side disagreed, it was a curse to hurt you after all, besides Camelot is in danger, I can get here because the curse is weakening and we need your help to defeat them," Stella said.

"Help? Defeat who?" Merlin asked now starting to feel as though he was Stella's age with the amount of questions he was asking.

"Who do you think? Morgana," Stella said.

"Morgana's dead," Merlin said hoping it was still true.

"She was yes, but unfortunately not all who followed her died with her, they were able to bring her back and she's the one who cast the curse," Stella said.

"How do you know all this?" Merlin asked.

"It doesn't matter, what does matter is getting you back to Camelot before she realizes that her barriers between the worlds are weakening," Stella said.

"Alright, but if this is a trap I'm going to kill you," Merlin said.

"Fair enough," Stella agreed. It didn't take long to get Merlin packed. He didn't have much he wanted to bring, he left everything behind in Camelot. At least everything of importance. Before they left Stella reversed his age, making him look young again, which made her much weaker than she wanted to admit. She led Merlin through the town and to a place he had never seen before. It was called _The Bridge of Time_ but he hadn't seen this place before. He had lived here for so many years and yet he had never seen this place before.

"Has this place always been here?" Merlin asked.

"Yes, this is the doorway between the two sides of Camelot," Stella said.

"How come I've never seen it before?" Merlin wondered.

"Only people who know of the two worlds can see it," Stella remarked. She ushered him inside. Merlin looked around the bookstore and saw it was abandoned, clearly it had been for a long time judging by the amount of dust throughout the place the only sign that life had ever been here before were the tracks Stella had made when she came through coming here. They made their way to the back of the store where it looked as though a wall had been built right through the bridge. However, after a few incantations, courtesy of Stella, the bridge looked like it headed through to a forest.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Merlin asked.

"If it wasn't safe would I be going first?" Stella replied in the form of a question. Stella walked across the bridge but halfway through she disappeared. Merlin was worried but knew there was something trustworthy about this girl. He followed her through. On the other side of the bridge Stella was waiting.

"You know the longer I hold that open, the more likely Morgana's men will be able to find us?" Stella said.

"Sorry, is this really?" Merlin looked around, it looked the exact same as he remembered it. Could this really be it? Could he really be in Camelot?

"Yes," Stella said, "Welcome back to Camelot."


	3. The Journey: Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Despite what Stella said, Merlin thought they were lost. She kept changing directions so often it felt as though they were walking through someone's arteries. Merlin was also astounded by how much he missed his youth. Of course he was immortal so he could change his appearance but after awhile he just let himself be the old man everyone thought Merlin was. He realized he was glad to looking in his late twenties or early thirties. They walked for hours on end as the day wore away. Finally, it was starting to get dark when Stella slumped down and sat with her back to the tree.

"Are you alright?" Merlin asked. He then saw the faint glow of the path they had been walking and realized how much strength it was taking her to heal Merlin and bring him back to his youth, bring him to Camelot and then find a path that is safe. Stella's eyes were straining to keep open.

"It's alright, rest, we can continue in the morning," Merlin said as she fell asleep. He made a camp for the night and then fell asleep himself.

When Merlin awoke the next morning, Stella was still asleep. _Poor girl_ , he thought, _it must've taken so much strength to do what she had done to save Camelot._ When she finally did awake she claimed to be feeling much better.

"Sorry, I didn't know that would happen," Stella said.

"Don't be sorry, you're actions and bravery would've killed most warlocks," Merlin replied.

"Nevertheless we must get going," Stella said before getting up extinguishing the flames from last night's fire and starting on the path again. Merlin thought the child to be much like Arthur, full of determination and justice. However Merlin was still curious about the child.

"How did you know where to find me?" Merlin asked.

"I told you it's a long story," Stella replied.

"No, you told me it doesn't matter," Merlin said.

"Listen I'm on the side of Camelot but if I told you, you would most certainly try to kill me," Stella said putting distance between her and Merlin.

"Why would that be?" Merlin asked.

"I told you I'd prefer not to talk about it. Perhaps when you know you are safe, then I might tell you," Stella said grabbing a hat out of her bag and using it to hide her hair.

"What are you doing?" Merlin asked. It only then occurred to him that the girl was wearing what a boy would be wearing if they were back in the time of Camelot. She was wearing black pants, a white shirt slightly big on her and her blue jacket that looked worn from wear. When she put on the gray hat she certainly did look like a young boy.

"If I want to wear clothes that are actually comfortable I have to hide my hair," Stella explained.

"What's wrong with the female clothes?" Merlin asked.

"Are you serious? Merlin, they are the most uncomfortable things in the world if you ever see me wearing a corset please know I've lost my soul," Stella said.

Merlin laughed. They continued on their way to Camelot and before long they were on the outskirts of the city.

"It looks exactly as it did before," Merlin remarked in amazement.

"Remember while it's been well over a thousand years for you, it's only been fifteen here, not much has changed," Stella said. They walked to the border of the city and Merlin collapsed and fell to his knees, both tears of joy and sadness began to flow. Stella knelt down to help him.

"Sir, are you alright?" She asked.

"More than alright. I thought I'd never see this place again," Merlin replied. They stayed at the border for a while. Merlin sat there weeping tears of joy while Stella sat beside him. She didn't say anything but Merlin knew the young girl couldn't possibly understand what he was going through.

"It must've been lonely, having no one for so long," Stella commented.

"It was but it's all right Camelot is right and everything is right in the world again," Merlin said with a smile.

"Not everything, Morgana is still trying to kill us all," Stella remarked.

Merlin chuckled, "That was normal for me."

"That does not sounds pleasant," Stella said sliding down off the log she was sitting on to be on the same level as Merlin. She wrapped her arms around her knees.

"It wasn't but I'd give anything to do it again," Merlin said.

"While luckily you don't have to give up much," Stella said.

"Child?" Merlin said.

"Adult?" Stella replied teasing the warlock.

"When we get to Camelot, where will you go?" Merlin asked.

"I don't know but I always find my way around," Stella replied.

"If you wish it, you could stay with me and I could teach you magic and medicine," Merlin offered. Stella laughed.

"What?" Merlin asked.

"I will most definitely take your offer with the magic portion however, I know more about medicine then I'm sure you do," Stella replied.

"I doubt it," Merlin said confidently.

"I don't, before I came to find you I was court physician in my old kingdom," Stella said.

"And when did you leave your kingdom to start searching for me?" Merlin asked.

"About a year ago," Stella said.

"Impossible, you are a child," Merlin replied.

"Do I hear jealousy in the voice of an extremely old man? Is he jealous of a child?" Stella joked.

"Excuse me but I think you were born before the curse, that makes you extremely old too," Merlin replied in a similar tone.

"Although I was born before the curse I was only a newborn child, and time froze here so technically I'm not that old," Stella said.

"Anyways the offer is still in the air," Merlin says.

"A thousand times yes, I'm going to be a student of Emrys, Merlin the-" Stella starts.

"Are we now a huge fan of me?" Merlin asked jokingly.

"Certainly not, you are just a genius with magic who happens to be an idiot," Stella said, "just for the record sir, I really don't mean any of this."

"I never had any doubt," Merlin stood up and offered a hand to Stella, "shall we?"

"We shall, onward to Camelot" Stella replied. With that they walked into the city of Camelot and headed straight for the castle.


	4. The Arrival: Chapter Four

While an excellent guide through the forest, Stella was hopeless navigating the city of Camelot. Fortunately, Merlin knew these streets like the back of his hand.

"It should be much easier than this," Stella said annoyed that Merlin knew the streets better than she did. Merlin laughed at her. "I've known these streets since I was a boy," Merlin said.

"While then lead so I don't have to use magic quite so often," Stella said. For the first time he could see the tiredness in her eyes. He had forgotten how tiring using magic for extended periods of time was.

"Probably should, shouldn't I?" Merlin said rhetorically. Stella nodded. It was only a short while longer until they had reached the gates of the castle of Camelot. Merlin had seen star struck before, but he had never seen someone be so amazed with Camelot before.

"Have you ever been here before?" Merlin questioned Stella.

"Does it matter you're about to see your friends," Stella said pointing towards two knights running towards them. Sure enough it was Percival and Leon. Both of them looked extremely happy to see Merlin. As they came running towards Merlin, Stella ducked out of the way to avoid being caught in the bear hug. Merlin could feel them practically strangling him to death. Both of them looked older than he had remembered them, however, he was older than both of them combined several times over.

"Where have you been it's only been fifteen years?" Percival said.

"We thought you were dead," Leon explained.

"I thought the same thing," Merlin said.

"What do you mean?" Leon asked.

"It doesn't matter at the moment, we need a hearing with the queen," Stella said joining the conversation.

"And who might you be?" Percival said, Stella's eyes started darting around to think of a lie.

"He's my apprentice," Merlin said considering the clothes she was wearing, "his name is Sam, and he is right I do need to talk to Guinevere." Stella relaxed and silently thanked Merlin.

"Yes well she is quite busy with Arthur's coronation, but I'm sure she will be will be able to see you," Leon said showing Merlin and Stella towards the castle.

"Has it really been that long?" Merlin asked.

"Yes the prince is almost an adult now," Percival said leading them through the doors. With each step Merlin swore Stella's eyes got larger and they were filled with more wonder that he had ever seen. The castle looked almost the same as it had been when he was a boy. He was glad to be back even after so long. Before entering the great hall, he could already tell that the coronation for Arthur II was going to be extravagant due to the amount of servants moving in and out the doors of the great hall. Inside the great hall looked very elegant mixed with strong and confident, only one word came to mind when he saw it, Gwen.

Gwen was over by the thrones, one the opposite side of the room.

"Milady? Do you have a few moments to spare?" Leon asked.

"I suppose Leon, is everything alright?" Gwen asked not noticing Merlin or Stella.

"More than alright," Leon said pointing to Merlin. Gwen smiled one of the biggest smiles Merlin had ever seen. She ran to him and buried him in a hug.

"Merlin, it's good to see you," Gwen said holding him tightly.

"Likewise Milady," Merlin replied.

"And this is?" Gwen asked Merlin but clearly meaning who is the child with you.

"This is my apprentice, Sam. He was the one who convinced me to come back Milady," Merlin answered.

"Well thank you, it's been a very long time since I've seen him," Gwen said to Stella.

"My pleasure Milady," Stella said bowing to Gwen.

"I was hoping you would come back. Unfortunately, Gaius passed away a few years ago and we haven't been able to find a physician since, I know you are quite the expert. I know you might not be staying for long but the offer is there if you would like," Gwen said leading Merlin and Stella away from the knights who had left to go return to the border.

"Would my apprentice be able to stay and help as well?" Merlin asked.

"Most certainly, Gaius always loved you helping him I'm sure you feel the same for Sam," Gwen said.

"Certainly, he is incredibly important to me," Merlin said and he could practically feel Stella blush.

"I would have someone show you to your room but I think you are able to find your way yourself as you did live there for many years," Gwen said.

"Yes of course, I've missed you Milady," Merlin said.

"I've missed you too, Merlin," Gwen replied.

Merlin showed Stella to the court physician's place and he let her stay in his old room.

"Thank you for everything you've done for me," Stella said.

"Likewise, without you I'd still be stuck in the other Camelot," Merlin said.

"I have to warn you, not everything is good in the world," Stella said.

"Are you talking about Morgana?" Merlin asked.

"Yes she has plans, awful plans and while I brought you here to reconcile, I also brought you here to help," Stella replied.

"It doesn't look like anything awful is going to happen, or is that only the way it seems," Merlin said.

"Finally someone who listens to me," Stella said, "yes she is planning to fulfil a Prophecy."

"What is this prophecy?" Merlin asked almost fearful to know the answer.

"It's called the Prophecy of Three. It goes as such

 _Of light and darkness makes these souls,_

 _with whom the fate of our world moulds._

 _One light, one dark and one of each other,_

 _shall set the world on one path or another._

 _To light and darkness the world will fall,_

 _unless three bonded souls answer the call._ " Stella recited.

"That doesn't sounds pleasant," Merlin said.

"Agreed," Stella replied.

"How do you know so much about this prophecy and Morgana's plans?" Merlin asked again trying to push the girl to try to confess.

"I told you, you'd never trust me again, it's better left alone or at least until you know me a little better," Stella said

"I don't think it would impact my trust with you," Merlin said.

"No, I think it really would," Stella replied before walking to her bedroom door, "Thank you again for everything, goodnight." And she closed her bedroom door.


	5. The Trial: Chapter Five

A/N I am so sorry I haven't been posting I promise I will try to start a schedule. Thank you for all of the views and reviews they are most appreciated. I will try to post weekly but life gets in the way a lot. I promise I will try harder. To attempt to make up for not posting here's an extra chapter. As always, nothing is mine except the plot and Stella, enjoy!

Merlin didn't sleep much last night. He kept hearing screaming from Stella's room. But every time he went to check on her she was fast asleep. He wondered what she was screaming about in her sleep. Using magic for long periods of time was hard enough. And he knew she was desperate to keep the reasons behind how she knew so much a secret. It obviously was something from her past haunting her. However, he never heard her once cry for a mother or a father. He felt bad for her but figured to not discuss it with her as it is wasn't Merlin's business.

"Good morning," Merlin said to a tired looking Stella when she emerged from her room.

"Good morning to you too," Stella said groggily.

"Sleep well? Or at all?" Merlin asked.

"Enough to provide a satisfactory amount of energy for today," Stella replied.

"Well I need you to run a few errands for me today, apparently time doesn't stand still in the way of getting sick, here's a list of people who you'll need to see," Merlin said handing her a list.

"Alright I should be back shortly," Stella said before putting on her hat and leaving the chambers.

As Stella was delivering medicines to the people in the city she stumbled across a young man with an actual target on his back and other young men were throwing knives or shooting arrows at him. She felt sick to her stomach seeing it happen and she rushed in to help the young man. Trained to work with flying knives she caught the front most young man's knife.

"What? You think you're some hero trying to save him, it's only a game," the young man said rudely.

"It's only a game if both people agree to play and by the looks of it he didn't," Stella replied.

"Who are you to call judgement on me?" He asked.

Stella had to think before she answered making sure to keep her gender a secret, "Same as you, just a young man, that makes us equal, at least equal enough to tell you what you're doing is wrong."

"But it isn't as simple as you think, we'll never be equals," he said spitting in Stella's face.

"What gives you the right to go around and be such an ass, were you born with a stick up your ass or did you just learn this behaviour," Stella said harshly.

"Do you know who you're talking to?" he said with the same devilish grin she'd seen on him when he was throwing knives. Stella pondered for a second.

"By my new guess probably someone who's allowed to go around and be a stubborn, arrogant ass to everybody?" Stella said cheekily.

"Meet the future king, Prince Arthur the II," one of his comrades said.

"Your head is going to be on a stick, boy," Arthur said to Stella trying to instill fear in her.

"Not if you can't catch me," she said before running as fast as she could. Arthur and the rest of what she supposed would be his knights came running after her. Fortunately, she was the only not weighed down by heavy armour. Unfortunately, she had no armour to protect herself. They eventually caught up with her. Everyone was panting but Arthur still had a forceful look in his eyes.

"Are you a coward now?" Arthur asked cheekily.

"Not in the slightest," Stella said before making one of the stupidest decisions in her life, to run towards him with no sword. She managed to snatch a knife from Arthur's belt. Stella did try not to end up losing to Arthur but it was hard as she was outnumbered, and was only protected by a throwing knife. She dropped the knife after Arthur practically tried to slice her hand off.

"Seize him," Arthur declared and two men grabbed either arm. She kicked them in the shins and almost got away but became more compliant after she was being held at sword point. While walking through the castle she tried to take in everything, she hoped her life wouldn't be ended before she was able to. They led her down to the dungeons and threw her in a cell.

"We will be back in a few hours time for your hearing," Arthur said. Stella sat on the stone floor she looked in her bag to see there were still two bottles inside.

Meanwhile, Merlin was scouring through his books to find any relation to the prophecy Stella had recited. He had found nothing so far and it was making him more frustrated by the minute. After finally deciding to give up, he left to take a walk around the castle. Still busy getting ready for Arthur's coming of age ceremony, the halls were bustling with people. Not watching where he was going, he ran into Leon.

"Still clumsy?" Leon asked amused.

"Just a little bit, I have a lot on my mind at the moment," Merlin said.

"Well there's a hearing in a few hours time if you need a distraction," Leon said.

"Might I ask what it is about?" Merlin asked curious.

"Apparently some young man pissed off the prince and he's being held in the dungeons, it's probably nothing, the stocks at most," Leon said. At the thought of this Merlin knew who the young man or rather young girl down in the dungeons. He laughed to himself.

"That sounds more familiar than you'd think," Merlin said.

"I think I understand, it's Sam isn't it?" Leon asked.

"I'd be more surprised if it isn't," Merlin said chuckling.

"He's in the far corner on the left side if you need to talk to him," Leon said.

"Not so much talk to him more like laugh at him," Merlin said.

"I have to go, I'll see you later," Leon said walking in the other direction.

As he left Merlin walked towards the dungeons, feeling very much like Gaius.

"Are you done laughing," Stella said with a raised eyebrow.

"I suppose, did you finish delivering everything?" Merlin asked.

"Just about, I still have two bottles, one for a cough and another a sleeping draught," Stella said.

"Well, that's fine, both of those are meant for people in the castle, one of the knights is still getting over a sickness and the sleeping draught is for you," Merlin said retrieving the bag from Stella.

"Me?" Stella asked.

"I figure you might want to stop screaming and sleep tonight," Merlin said. Stella turned red and looked down.

"You heard that?" She asked.

"I think the next two kingdoms over heard it too," Merlin said.

"My apologizes I didn't mean to," Stella said not meeting Merlin's eyes.

"Might I ask what it was about?" Merlin asked.

"What was what about?" Stella asked.

"Your dream last night," Merlin replied wondering if she was only stalling.

"Right, it was nothing, really. Just something buried in the past," Stella said looking at the floor.

"It's alright, I won't press, however this might help you actually get some sleep if you want," Merlin said trying to be considerate of the girl's feelings.

"Thank you," Stella said quickly, taking the bottle from his hand. They stood in uncomfortable silence for a while before Merlin muttered something about medicine and wandered off. Stella exhaled. She knew this had been a bad idea but the thought of her past being revealed by her night terrors was all the more frightening than what she was doing. It was simple really, she just had to find the other parts of the prophecy and make sure they are set in the right track. Morgana would surely have her head on a stick if they found her. Luckily she didn't dare come so close to Camelot so she was safe, for the moment at least. She didn't remember much about the dream she was having last night except the pain she was in. Morgana was there, obviously, no one else was ready to kill her in a heartbeat. And someone else, she knew she had met them before but couldn't quite place it. Morgana was yelling something but it was just out of earshot so Stella couldn't decipher what she was saying. She sounded angry, you never want to make Morgana angry. And Stella had clearly done just that. Then the man whispered something and his eyes glowed, he was using magic. She felt immense pain everywhere. It was when she knew, this wasn't just a dream, they were torturing her in her sleep. She screamed and thrashed trying to make the pain stop but it was useless. She woke up several times throughout the night but every time she went back to sleep there was Morgana, ready to torture her into telling her location. Stella figured Merlin could help her but he was already doing more than what she had hoped. She couldn't possibly bother him with this, he didn't even know what he was getting himself into.

It wasn't long before the trial, and the prince still wasn't exactly pleased with her. Luckily the queen was kind. She was also quite amused that on the first days of her arrival she got herself into trouble with the prince, almost exactly like Merlin. Stella's punishment was that she would be sent to the stocks. Disgusting, but definitely better than death she thought. Though it didn't help that Merlin was laughing at her the entire time and throwing the grossest things. Hilarious and generous as he was she wanted to punch him. The event wasn't long and eventually the two made it back to the physician's chambers. Stella took a bath and tried to practically scrub her skin off to get the stench off of her while Merlin went back to his work on preparing medicines.

"Do you have no other clothes?" Merlin asked when she came out on her same clothes as before.

"I'm a warlock who is homeless and on the run from everything... and I cleaned my clothes before I put them back on thank you very much," Stella said.

"That was quite the entertainment," Merlin said teasing Stella.

"I'm glad you found my performance enjoyable," Stella said using a mocking tone.

"Tomorrow maybe don't try to humiliate the prince," Merlin said.

"To be fair I didn't know who he was until after I called him some colourful words," Stella said and they both laughed. Suddenly, Merlin frowned at the sight of Stella's wrists. They were bloody and bruising.

"Do you want something for that?" Merlin said gesturing to her wrists.

"No I should be fine but thank you," Stella said before climbing the stairs.

"Are you sure you are alright?" Merlin asked quite concerned.

"Very much so, thank you for the help, goodnight," Stella said. She made her way into her room and Merlin dove back into his books searching for anything that could reveal Stella's past.


	6. The Past: Chapter Six

A/N Hi! Sorry that it's not exactly a week but I think I'm gonna try to upload on Sundays. This chapter is pretty fast paced so sorry about that but I think it's time that you guys learned who Stella is. Also, it's been about two months since the last chapter and now Stella has an apprenticeship with Leon. As always, I own nothing but Stella, the Ackland's religion and the plot. Enjoy!

Stella had the same 'dream' every night for the next two months. This time however, Morgana was louder, Stella could hear her screaming.

"Tell me where you and Merlin are or you know what the consequences will be!" She yelled. The pain was intensified from the past few days and even after taking the sleeping draught for several nights, Morgana was still able to reach her. Stella squirmed each time more agony was added to her torture. When she woke up her throat was raw.

"Are you alright?" Merlin asked, running into her room.

"Fine, thank you," Stella answered with a rough voice.

"It didn't work did it?" Merlin asked disappointed.

"No," Stella said looking away from Merlin.

"It should, do you know why it's not working?" Merlin asked.

"It doesn't matter, I'll be fine," Stella replied quickly.

"You won't be fine, you kept saying that but it's not true, can you at least tell me what's wrong," Merlin said concerned.

"The more you know, the more danger you will be in, I can't do that to you," Stella said.

"To be honest, I don't really care about the danger but I do care about the fact that you are unwell, I'm supposed to protect you," Merlin said.

"I think I'm the one who is supposed to protect you, you are the most powerful warlock in the world," Stella said.

"Well if I'm the most powerful I think I can protect myself," Merlin joked. Stella laughed and let a small smile slip but it quickly disappeared.

"It didn't work because it wasn't a dream," Stella said catching her breath.

"Why would someone want to hurt you in your sleep," Merlin said confused.

"I know a lot of bad people, I did something they didn't like," Stella said almost in tears.

"It's alright, I can help you, I can keep these dreams or whatever they are away," Merlin said trying to lift Stella's spirits.

"You can't do it for the rest of my life, they'll never stop until they get what they want… I told you when you trusted me I would tell why I knew about everything. Do you trust me?" Stella asked.

"Yes, more than anything. You excel at magic and you have a kind heart, I don't believe you would do anything ever to harm me," Merlin said with confidence and an eagerness to learn about Stella's past. Stella took a deep breath trying to hold back all of her emotions, she knew she had to tell Merlin but she was scared of what he would think of her. She exhaled and started.

"Morgana, I knew her. Not just because I had magic but because… because-... I- I'm her child, I'm Morgana's daughter... I knew about everything because I was there. She wanted to turn the prophecy herself... I am one of the souls in the prophecy. I know about the prophecy and you and the time curse and all of it because I am her daughter... And I know that even if I had rescued you, you would've ran if I had told you when you had first asked." Stella said, nervously.

"I'm sorry," Merlin said as he held Stella while she cried. It was the first time she had ever cried in front of Merlin. She felt so vulnerable, like a very young child scared of her nightmares. Merlin held her to try and comfort her but he knew she had been through more than he could ever imagine.

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry," Stella cried. Over the past few weeks Merlin felt like he was actually her father, they had become very close despite both of them working. Stella or rather Sam had begun an apprenticeship with Leon as well as still working for Merlin. This made it hard to talk to Stella but Merlin did feel very close with Stella. Both of them were working extremely hard to crack the prophecy as well as teach Stella as much magic as possible. They had spent tons of time practicing in secret. Merlin felt as though she had always been working with him, like she was actually his child. He felt as though Stella with was an entirely different person. She had been through so much and he could do nothing about it.

"That is not how a mother should treat her child," Merlin said.

"It doesn't really matter, I'm not going back, she can kill me before I have even an ounce of respect or anything for her," Stella said wiping away her tears and distancing herself from Merlin.

"You deserved to know that you are living with a monster," She said.

"You're not a monster," Merlin started, "I don't care what happened before I met you but if you risked your life to save me and stop Morgana I doubt you would be a monster, trust me I've met plenty of them."

"Do you hate me?" Stella asked.

"No, why would I hate you?" Merlin said.

"Because only one other person knows of my past and they were the person who gave me this scar," Stella said tugging at the back of her shirt to reveal a long, thick white scar that looked like it ran from her hairline down her back.

"What happened? Who would do this to you?" Merlin said with anger burning inside of him.

"There is more than one type of magical religion, while running from Morgana I stumbled upon a clan called the Ackland's. When they found out who I was they were upset, they wanted to get back at my mother for what she had done, waging a war of magic… I'm not a stranger to torture, not in the slightest… but at least my mother had the decency to place a leather strap around my neck before whipping me… it almost killed me, I was too weak to even move and I was left to die. When I was at my most vulnerable, Morgana was able to access my dreams. She's trying to find you through me. I had to protect you, she wants you dead, even more than me," Stella said with a pained look on her face, almost as if she was reliving the horrific events she described. Merlin felt sick to his stomach, how could anyone want to hurt Stella.

"Does it still hurt?" Merlin asked.

"No, it healed, but sometimes a memory is more painful than the scar it leaves, don't you agree?" Stella asked. Merlin thought of Arthur and everything they had been through.

"Yes… I'm sorry for everything that's happened to you, I promise I'll-" Merlin started but was interrupted.

"Don't promise that, while I've told you much there is always more to know, I am destined to protect you for as long as I live, trying to help me will only make things harder for both of us. I'm okay, I promise," Stella said. Merlin felt awful that the child before him has dedicated her entire life to protecting him. He then thought about how Arthur might've felt when he learned what Merlin did for him. Merlin gave Stella a spell and said it would block out Morgana from interrupting her sleep. She thanked him and as he left her room she said.

"Don't fret, we would not have been given such hard tasks in life if we weren't capable of fufilling them."


End file.
